ELLISVILLE – Jones College saw its 21-point halftime lead vanish as No. 3 Northwest got a Will Uselton 28-yard field goal as time expired to give the Rangers a shocking, 38-35 win in the 2026 season-opener for both teams.
Northwest scored 24 unanswered points over the final quarter and a half, capped by Uselton's game-winner.
Jones appeared firmly in control early, riding a dominant rushing performance from CJ Rush. Rush scored three times in the first half, including touchdown runs of 2, 10 and 28 yards, as the Bobcats built a 28-7 advantage.
Jones opened the scoring with a 63-yard drive that ended when Rush powered into the end zone from 2 yards out with 9:42 remaining in the first quarter. The Bobcats extended their lead early in the second when Rush finished an 80-yard, 14-play drive with a 10-yard touchdown run.
After a short Jones drive resulted in Jevarion Glover connecting with Jet Henderson for an 8-yard touchdown, Northwest finally answered. Macaleb Taylor scored on a 2-yard run with 7:38 left in the half to cut the deficit to 21-7.
The momentum didn't last long, however. Rush broke free for his third touchdown of the half, a 28-yard run that pushed Jones' lead back to 28-7 with 6:01 remaining before halftime.
Northwest came out of the locker room determined to make the game a different story.
The Rangers began chipping away in the third quarter, with Noah Gillon finding TyAnthony Elmore for a 15-yard touchdown with 7:14 remaining in the period. Jones answered with another long scoring drive, as Rush scored his fourth touchdown of the night on a 3-yard run to make it 35-14.
From there, the Rangers began their furious comeback.
Gillon connected with Dagarrious Clifton for a 10-yard touchdown with 1:53 left in the third quarter, trimming the Jones advantage to 35-21 entering the fourth.
Northwest continued its charge early in the final period. Taylor scored his second touchdown of the night on another 2-yard run, bringing the Rangers within one score at 35-28 with 9:15 remaining.
Then came the play that completely changed the game.
With 5:42 remaining, Clydarrien Peters fielded a Jones punt and raced 55 yards for a touchdown. Uselton's extra point tied the game at 35-35, erasing a 21-point deficit and setting up a dramatic finish.
Taylor scored twice on the ground for Northwest, while Gillon accounted for two touchdown passes, connecting with Elmore and Clifton.
Glover finished 16-for-28 for 209 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. Tyree Barnett had a career night with nine catches for 169 yards and also had a 57-yard kick return and 61-yard punt return.
Kelton McLaurin had a career and game-high 11 tackles, Malachi Henderson had nine and both Arterus Moffett and Dalyn Pierce chipped in seven apiece.
Jones will try and regroup next Thursday, Sept. 3 when they make the long road trek to Coahoma.
